For those of you who teach for LAUSD, there is a terrific web resource called Digital Library. It is available on any LAUSD computer and it connects you with so many resources! Some of my favorites are Maps 101 - any map you would want, Facts on File - great if you are having students do some research on a country. This site has mutilple resources for reference data bases and it also has news services databases. Most of the files are Pdf and can vary in length for paragraphs to several pages, so you can have varying reading levels on the resources. Some have links to other websites for further research. They also show the students how to correctly site their reference. Another good resource is Gale Cengage, which also has lots of articles on various subjects. There is also access to World Book Encyclopedia, so this really is a tremendous database. Our librarian wants the students to be able to do research from various sources, print and internet, and so she had also put an e-book lbrary on our school website so our students have even more variety and can access some sources from home. There are some websites, like the Salem Press and the Oxford Reference Online that do require students to have a public library card, but what a great idea - having students go and get a library card and its free! That is a win/win situation. The other reason I like these web resources is that they prepare students for college level research without going to Google or Wikipedia for all their information. If students know how to access these databases, college libraries will be much easier.
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